DITC: Jason Kidd 2001
Jason Kidd says the damndest things.
by Russ Bengtson
Whenever you interview an NBA player, you always hope he’s going to say something crazy. Like, “I think I can lead the League in scoring and assists,” or “I can’t wait to dunk on Shaq,” or, “Hopefully I can continue to do what I do best. Get the team to the playoffs and have fun doing it.”
That last one doesn’t seem all that crazy unless you consider the context—Jason Kidd in the fall of 2001, talking about the New Jersey Nets. They hadn’t sniffed the postseason since 1998, the John Calipari days. It was September, the month everything changed, and Kidd had just been traded to the Nets in July, two months and an eternity before. When the trade went down, the fact that Stephon Marbury had been traded for Kidd—who was older and thought to be starting on the downside—was what passed for shocking news. I remember someone from SLAM calling me to tell me about the trade, and discussing it (mostly negatively from the Nets point of view) for a long time. As it turned out, we had no idea what shocking was.
We also had no idea about Kidd. We’d all watched him when we could, of course, but in those stone-age days before League Pass the West Coast was hard to keep up with. And Kidd had been out there his whole life—first playing high school and playground ball in Oakland, then at Cal, then in pre-Cubes Dallas and pre-D’Antoni Phoenix. Dude was so Cali he even bleached his hair for a month or so.
So when I talked to him in September, and he started talking playoffs, I wasn’t sure how to take it. I don’t think I actually laughed at him over the phone, but I was thinking it. I’d been to quite a few Nets games over the previous few years, and their flaws were many. Keith Van Horn was timid and inconsistent, Kenyon Martin was injury prone, and Kerry Kittles was all of the above. Byron Scott’s first year as head coach had resulted in a 30 games under .500 season. Subtract Marbury’s obvious passion from that equation and fill it with Kidd’s seemingly cool demeanor—it was hard to believe that things would get THAT much better. Not to mention they had traded their homegrown lottery pick, Seton Hall big man Eddie Griffin, for three lesser-regarded players: Arizona swingman Richard Jefferson, Stanford center Jason Collins, and Pepperdine guard Brandon Armstrong. Playoffs? We’re talking about PLAYOFFS?
Well, we all know what happened. Jefferson and Collins stepped right into big minutes, Martin recovered and became a break-finishing monster, Kittles and Van Horn filled their roles, and Jason Kidd did exactly what he said. The Nets went 52-30, and not only made the playoffs, but advanced all the way to their first-ever NBA Finals, where they were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers. But Kidd had made good on his promise. And I know better than to ever doubt him again.
SLAM: You’ve been a West Coast guy your whole life. What excites you the most about coming East?
JK: I’m just excited to be able to display my talents on the east coast. When people talk about basketball, they very rarely mention the West Coast. I’m happy to play in I guess you’d call it the Mecca, or the capital.
SLAM: Have you talked to Jerry Colangelo or any of those guys since the trade—has there been closure?
JK: There’s closure because I don’t work for them anymore. That’s behind me now. Closure was trading me, and you just have to move on. I have nothing to say to either Jerry or Bryan, or Skiles. I played hard for them, anything about me like “he dogged it,” or “he didn’t give 100 percent effort.” So I can’t say anything bad about them, and I hope they don’t say anything bad about me.
SLAM: What was your first reaction when you first heard about the trade?
JK: I had a gut feeling I was being dealt somewhere. They wouldn’t tell me to my face, but after the last game against Sacramento in the playoffs, I had a feeling that my time in Phoenix had come to an end and it was time to move on. I had told a couple of people that and they were saying “there’s no way.” But you can never say there’s no way, especially in this business. I wasn’t caught off guard, it was more the way everything was handled, which is what disappointed me the most. Things always come to an end, and sometimes they end the right way and sometimes they end the wrong way. And I just felt this ended the wrong way.
The good thing is that I have the chance to play basketball. This is a kid’s game, and you play against the best in the world, so I’m excited to have this opportunity to display my talents with the New Jersey Nets. People always talk about the Knicks, hopefully with time we can get to that level of competitiveness that there’s another team. The perfect example is in L.A.—there are two teams now. It used to be just one team, now there’s two teams. So hopefully we can have that same type rivalry that the Clippers and Lakers are starting to have.
SLAM: Now, you know Steph said a lot of the same things when he came in. And everyone thought that the Nets were gonna be a better team, but here we are again. Do you think about that kind of thing at all?
JK: No, I think everybody’s different. You want to set high goals. My job is to win ballgames, and I’m not gonna be intent on doing anything less than that. The other thing is to make my teammates better. No matter who it is out on the court, my job is to make those guys better. This is coming at a time in my life when I’ve had past experiences—playing for the Dallas Mavericks and being young and understanding that there were a lot of high expectations, and then they went in different directions. And then coming to a team that won 50 games every year—hopefully I can bring what I’ve learned to the New Jersey Nets. Because these guys want to win as bad as I do, and that’s where it starts.
SLAM: In Kenyon you have someone a little like Shawn Marion, so that’s a good start.
JK: I think they’re similar. Nobody knew about Shawn—everybody on our team knew about Shawn, but I think the public didn’t know until they got to see what he could do. I think I can help Kenyon in the same way—to get to the level that he wants to get to. Because I think he has the same abilities—he’s a little bigger, but he runs like a deer and he can get out there and run and plays above the rim. I’m very fortunate to have had some guys on my team who can do that. It makes my job a little easier. But he’s young—and there’s a lot of young guys on this team. Hopefully I can take them all under my wing. With Keith and Kenyon and Kerry, they can all help. This is not gonna be a one-man show, it’s gonna be a team effort. And if we can stay healthy, this can be a fun year.
SLAM: You’ve gotten a little more well-known for your scoring lately, and this seems like it’s a good time for that. You’re gonna need to score more than you have in the past. Do you feel like you’re ready to take that kind of weight, as well as running the team?
JK: My game will change. I’m gonna come out and look to be aggressive, and look to score. But what I enjoy most is to get the ball to the open guy and have them put the ball in the basket. With Keith, and Kittles, and Kenyon—we’ve got a couple guys who can put the ball in the basket. But I won’t pass up any open shots, and I will look to score and I think that will help my teammates. They’ll be a little bit more open.
SLAM: Were you disappointed you couldn’t stay with 32?
JK: Disappointed, yeah; but when I saw who wore it I [laughs] there was no disappointment. You’re talking about one of the greatest of all time, Doctor J, Julius. So there were no phone calls made [laughs again] to management. You always have to respect your elders and also respect the game.
SLAM: Do you consider this a fresh start? And did you really want one?
JK: This is a little different—this is gonna be a different conference, a different area. This will be new to me, but the game hasn’t changed, and hopefully I can continue to do what I do best. Get the team to the playoffs and have fun doing it.
SLAM: Do you think it’s realistic to think that you guys can get to the playoffs next year?
JK: There’s no reason why we shouldn’t set our goal to be that. I’m not sittin’ here predicting—just setting goals. I don’t want people to be confused. I think goalwise, the teams you gotta look at are Indiana, Detroit, Boston, those were the bottom half—those are the teams we gotta pass. So I think you take a step—you gotta win the games that you’re supposed to win, and if you want to have any chance, you gotta pass the teams that were ahead of you. That’s the start.
SLAM: You said at the end of the season that you were pretty tired, following a long season and the Olympics. What did you do this summer, did you just take a lot of time off?
JK: I took a lot of time off. This was one of the first summers I’ve taken off a lot of time. The last two summers I represented my country, in Puerto Rico and then at the Olympics. This was the first summer I really relaxed, let my body catch its breath. And really now this is the start to turn on the engine and get the bad carbs out—the bad gas—and get the V-12 ready to go.
SLAM: Zone defenses this year. Do they mess you up or make things easier?
JK: I think it’s gonna put a premium on shooters, and guys being able to penetrate and being able to find the open guy. Guys are gonna have to knock down the open shot to spread that zone, and it will open up the middle.
SLAM: I’ve been to a lot of Nets games, and that’s been one of the problems the Nets have had—not being able to knock down those open shots.
JK: That was the thing in Phoenix, too—we didn’t shoot well as a team last year. But we just kept shooting them. You gotta trust them. That’s one thing that guys on my team gotta understand—I believe in them as much as they should believe in me. Any time you take a shot, it’s a good shot. You miss, and I believe you’re gonna make the next one.
SLAM: Now that you’ve had the summer, are you excited that things are getting started again?
JK: I’m really excited. Due to what has taken place in the last couple of weeks on the East Coast and in the world, I think this is gonna be a big time for professional athletes to get people’s minds off what has taken place for at least two or three hours. Our job is to entertain—and to also win ballgames—but It’s gonna be more of a job for us to go out there and make people laugh, cheer—and even boo—to make sure they leave Continental Arena or any arena with at least a couple hours of not thinking about what has happened.
SLAM: Booing’s always popular in Continental.
JK: As long as they’re not booing us. [Laughs]
SLAM: You’ve been in the League for a while now. Who would you still pay to see?
JK: Tracy McGrady and Allen Iverson, and I would have to go see the Big Fella. You’ve gotta take the family to see the Big Fella and say, that’s the guy that’s unstoppable. Or say the rules of the game has changed, and that’s the guy that changed it. Almost like Bill Russell or Wilt Chamberlain—he’s had that kind of an effect on the game. That’s a great compliment.
SLAM: Are you happy to be out of the West for that reason, at least the path to the Finals is a little bit clearer?
JK: A little bit clearer? Shit, you don’t have to see Duncan and Robinson, or the duo in L.A. Every night is another team that’s a playoff contender. And now you’ve gotta throw in the Clippers—teams are getting better. It’s not gonna be easy, but there is no clear-cut dominant favorite. There’s Philly, and Toronto and Milwaukee, but there are some positions open. All you gotta do is get to the dance, and anything can happen.
71 Responses to “DITC: Jason Kidd 2001”
Sep.28 at 1:39 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Oh yeah, the interview originally ran in SLAM 56.
Sep.28 at 1:43 pm
H to the izzo says:
Can you run the “Krazy Mad Moves” Kidd piece again.Or has it been long burned?
Sep.28 at 1:53 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I don’t even remember who wrote that–was before my time. Besides, I’m only re-running my own stuff. Re-typing that piece sounds like a job for an intern.
Sep.28 at 2:07 pm
Boing Dynasty says:
..and in turn, ill show you how to cook up summer, in the winter(n?).
Sep.28 at 2:30 pm
Allenp says:
Kidd deserved the MVP one of the two years he took the Nets to the Finals. Seriously, this is what makes me mad about the Steve Nash love fest. The East was and still is weaker than the West, but the talent on that Nets team in no way compares to the talent on the Suns team. I appreciate and acknowledge Nash’s mastery, but what he’s done with the Suns is only the sequel to what Kidd did with the Nets and nobody is recognizing. I sounded like the Madd Rapper with that last sentence.
Sep.28 at 2:32 pm
H to the izzo says:
You actually sounded like Shawn Marion.
Sep.28 at 2:42 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
While it sure would have been nice for Kidd to receive recognition beyond his All-Star spots, Tim Duncan won his only two MVPs those years. Would you say that Timmy doesn’t deserve a single MVP? Let’s not forget that the East was a mess in those days, and the Nets got SMOKED in the Finals both times. Also, you keep talking about the fact that Nash apparently can’t defend–what about the indisputable fact that after a decade in the NBA Jason Kidd STILL can’t shoot?
Sep.28 at 2:45 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
For the record, Kidd finished a close second in the voting in ‘02, and a distant ninth (with 0 first-place votes) in ‘03.
Sep.28 at 2:50 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Oh yeah, and in ‘01-02, the year Kidd was most deserving, he averaged 14.7 points and 9.9 assists as he orchestrated that enormous turnaround. Duncan averaged 25.5 points, 12.7 rebounds and led the Spurs to a 58-24 record, second only to the Sacramento Kings 61-21.
Sep.28 at 2:57 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
And for the record, in 1997-98, when Tim Duncan (and a healthy David Robison) led the San Antonio Spurs to the biggest turnaround in League history, Duncan came in fifth in the MVP voting and didn’t even get a single first-place vote. Of course that may have had something to do with the presence of one Michael Jeffrey Jordan.
Sep.28 at 3:17 pm
Bryan says:
The Nets won 52 games in a weak ass east and the Suns win 60 games in the west.You can’t compare the two.The only comparison is that they both played after Stephon Marbury haha.There’s no way an MVP can shoot 39 percent this isn’t the sixties.Jkidd is amazing but I in no way think he should have won an MVP he turned the team around sure , but the year before Kmart,KVH and Kerry Kittles were all hurt and missed time , thats 3/5’s of the starting lineup Jkidd played with.They helped the turnaround some also.
Sep.28 at 3:24 pm
Bryan says:
Just to clarify , I’m not taking anything away from Kidd.But he didn’t do it all by himself.A lot of people seem to think it was exactly the same team and he took some roster full of 12th men and led them to the finals.
Sep.28 at 3:51 pm
jbn74sb says:
Am I seeing things or did Russ just use stats to back up his arguments? What is the world coming to?
Sep.28 at 4:09 pm
Konate says:
Ben Osborne has Pyschic powers i sware
Sep.28 at 4:13 pm
Newark Hawk says:
For the record, both ‘USA Today’ and ‘Sports
Illustrated’ polled NBA players and coaches
in the Spring of ‘02 regarding their pick for MVP. In both polls, Kidd got 60% OF THE VOTE!!
Duncan was second with about 20%. Now tell me,
who knows more about ballin’, the pros who make their living at it, or the chatterers and
keyboard punchers in the media who somehow got the right to select the MVP? And please don’t
tell me how much basketball trivia the morons
in the media can recite. That has nothing to
do with actually playing the game.
As far as the ‘97-’98 Spurs turnaround, you know perfectly well that they TANKED the previous season so they would have a shot at
getting Duncan. Sean Elliot and David Robinson
missed a ton of games, as did several other
key players.
Kidd didn’t win the MVP in ‘02, according to my sources, because there were NBA media in ONE MAJOR CITY that worked overtime trying to convince NBA media in other cities that
Duncan was more deserving than Kidd. I’ll
leave it to your imagination as to which MAJOR
CITY did not want Kidd to win the MVP. It’s
not very hard to figure out.
Sep.28 at 4:32 pm
Ak says:
Russ, Kidd can’t shoot is still a much better point guard than Nash! I actually agree with AllenP. Nash got all the love for doing what Kidd did for the Nets.And Russ, before you write it off and say it was in the East and the East was a mess remember that even though the East wasn’t very good the Nets still had never made the playoffs in about 6 years! Was it a coincidence then that the year they made it Kidd happened to be theie leader?
Sep.28 at 4:38 pm
Ak says:
Kidd can’t shoot but is still a much better point guard than Nash! I actually agree with AllenP. Nash got all the love in Phoenix for doing what Kidd in Jersey for the Nets.And Russ, before you write it off and say it was in the East and the East was a mess; remember that even though the East wasn’t very good at the time, the Nets still had never made the playoffs in about 6 years! Was it a coincidence then that the year they made it after so many years Kidd happened to be their leader?
Sep.28 at 4:44 pm
Jkidd5 says:
Kidd is levels above Nash, both in his prime, and presently. He took a team on which he was the only all-star at the time, to the finals two years in a row. Nobody was gonna beat those laker teams, but NJ did take two from SA, which is more than cleveland can say this year. Fact is, Kidd is the greatest point since stockton but is unfortunately overshadowed by the Nash bandwagon.
Sep.28 at 4:45 pm
Jake Appleman says:
Good times
Sep.28 at 4:45 pm
Tarzan Cooper says:
it’s a kidd’s game
Sep.28 at 4:45 pm
Jake Appleman says:
Bryan. Kidd was the ‘02 MVP. Trust me. There is no debating this.
Sep.28 at 4:52 pm
Ak says:
Bryan, Wouldn’t you agree that if Kidd were back in Phoenix with the same team that Nash has right now that the Suns would have at least been in the finals the past 2 years? Or better yet how far do you think the Nets with the current roster minus Kidd would go?
Sep.28 at 5:03 pm
bobbo says:
As I recall this interview was part of a piece on Kidd and the Nets which included his speech at the opening of training camp. I have tried to find it again, but failed. It started, “the losing ends now” and is one of the most inspiring sport speeches I can remember. Short and direct. Basic theme: I will lead you. He sure did.
Sep.28 at 5:25 pm
Ben Osborne says:
We’re still looking for a part-time intern.
Sep.28 at 5:31 pm
Bryan says:
How far did the suns go before Nash? How did they fare without him in the lineup? No I don’t think the suns would have gotten to the finals with kidd the past few years,cause he isn’t the scoring threat Nash is, Nash sets people up runs the break and scores himself at almost 20 a game.Like I said Kidd is amazing one of the all time greats and career wise a better player than Nash but right now Nash is the best pg in the game and has been for 3 years in a row.Everybody hates on Nash cause of his lack of defense which is fine I get it , but as terrible as he may be I saw him come up with a few KEY stops this last postseason whether it was a steal or a charge.And it is obviously debateable that Kidd was the MVP of 02 because he didn’t win it.
Sep.28 at 5:39 pm
Allenp says:
Bryan is was off-base. An MVP can’t shot 39 percnet, but he can be horrible on defense? WTF Both Nash and Kidd have easily identifiable holes in their games. Both took horrible squads and turned them around. One did it in a more difficult conference, the other did it with less talent. Russ’s argument about Duncan is valid, although I didn’t say Kidd should have won both years, just one of those years. And I’m not sure why he wasn’t just as deserving when he duplicated his Finals trip his second year with the Nets and managed to average 18.7, 8.9 and 6.3. The fact is, Nash’s run, while great, has received far more fanfare and hype.
Sep.28 at 5:41 pm
Allenp says:
Uh, Bryan, why do people use the poor record of the Suns before Nash arrived as justification of his greatness when Amare was injured for portions of that year and for half the season the starting point guard was Howard Eisley?
Sep.28 at 5:42 pm
Bryan says:
The same reason people use the nets were horrible before kidd arrived arugment even though 60%(!) of their starters were hurt?
Sep.28 at 5:44 pm
Allenp says:
Bryan, with Kidd and less talent the suns were regular visitors to the playoffs, check the team history page for yourself. With Marbury and a rookie Amare they were in the playoffs and I think they stole a few games from the Spurs. So, the Suns were a good team without Nash and got better when they got him, more talent and a better system.
Sep.28 at 5:46 pm
Allenp says:
The Nets had been horrible for SIX years before Kidd came. The Suns were horrible for one year and had been to the playoffs the year before that. Come on, it’s not even close to the same thing.
Sep.28 at 5:52 pm
Bryan says:
Actually they were in the playoffs 3 seasons before that not 6.It’s exactly the same.Every year Steph was there one of their major players was hurt, say what you want about Jayson Williams but he busted his ass for the Nets, he went out , kerry kittles missed an entire season , KVH struggled with injuries and so did Kenyon Martin then Kidd comes everyone is healthy and they make the playoffs , in PHX the Amare was hurt Nash comes in and has everyone having career years.It’s ridiculous to praise Kidd you have to downgrade Nash
Sep.28 at 5:53 pm
Bryan says:
The Stephon/Amare Suns were like the Sonic team that won 51 games a couple of seasons ago.A Fluke.
Sep.28 at 5:54 pm
Allenp says:
ACtually, if you read my effing comments you will see that I go out of my way to praise Nash and instead place the blame where it belongs, on the media that continues to reinforce the myth that Nash is slow, small and unathletic. Check my comments I give him credit for being great.
Sep.28 at 5:57 pm
Allenp says:
And when I checked the history page, I saw regular team success with Kidd, a trade that brought Marbury, a re-tooling, and then more success. But, I’m way off base .
Sep.28 at 5:57 pm
Allenp says:
An my six years comment about the Nets came from something Russ wrote, not something I checked myself. I apologize if it was incorrect.
Sep.28 at 5:58 pm
Allenp says:
And your argument that I had to downgrade Nash is hilarious from a man that took pains to point out Kidd’s shooting percentage in his initial post.
Sep.28 at 6:58 pm
me says:
it seems bball media writer are pretty stupid…how can I get this job…seems really easy. And Allenp, don`t waste your energies… Pheonix is a team that is pretty much custom built to fit Nash`s uptempo all offense no defense play. NJ is still trying build a team tailor suited for Kidd…and they are having alot of problems doing this. You cannot compare the two team situations…Kidd has no shooters, and actually no defenders now either…Nash has a slew of offense talented players…imagine how many assists Kidd would average playing with such a team? Theres just no question… and no one talks about his ridiculous and hall of fame tendency to put up triple doubles…Kidd is an impact on every part of the game and every part of his team…also phsycologically…I would really truly love to see him run a team as balanced and talented as what Nash has in Pheonix…but he has yet to get that chance. And VC…well…he never had that chane.
Sep.28 at 7:26 pm
Bryan says:
yea I downgraded an aspect of his game , but I’m talking about everyone who says Nash is just plain over rated.I didn’t say Kidd wasn’t great I said he can’t shoot.
Sep.28 at 8:10 pm
Mike says:
This is the year folks…Kidd for MVP and validation for Vinsanity
Sep.28 at 8:19 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Oh boy, I don’t even know where to start. First of all, anyone who thinks Steve Nash is SLOW and unathletic is blind. I don’t think a writer anywhere has ever called Nash slow. Second, don’t put “six years” on me. I said that the Nets hadn’t been in the playoffs since ‘98, and Kidd arrived in ‘01. Pretty basic math. Third, while it’s obvious Marbury doesn’t have the leadership talents Kidd does, his Nets were DECIMATED by injuries in 2000-01. Kerry Kittles missed the entire season, Van Horn missed 23 games, and Martin missed 14. The starting center was Evan Eschmeyer. In 2001-02, Kittles, Van Horn and Martin only missed a COMBINED 10 games (Kittles didn’t miss any, Van Horn missed one). The starting center was Todd MacCulloch, a huge upgrade over Esch. And they also added Collins and Jefferson, who both played huge roles. Marbury may not have taken that team to the Finals, but there’s no WAY they would have missed the playoffs.
Sep.28 at 8:24 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
And to say Kidd is “levels above” Nash is crazy. Kidd is a better rebounder and defender, they’re about equal on playmaking and pushing the tempo, and Nash is a better shooter. It’s also worth noting, perhaps, that had Kidd stayed out of trouble off the court, he’d probably still BE in Phoenix and we wouldn’t even be having this discussion.
Sep.28 at 9:08 pm
bryan says:
Dang Russ is almost agreeing with me?
Sep.28 at 10:22 pm
chronically_ill says:
bobbo, I would have loved to see Kidd making that speech. Dude has like, the most monotonous voice in the league. Hard to imagine him being all rah-rah in rallying the troops. Just goes to show us all that you dont have to be loud and showy to be an inspiring leader.
Sep.28 at 10:23 pm
chronically_ill says:
At least on the court. I hope Jason Kidd has learned from his mistakes, but beating your wife is indefensible.
Sep.29 at 1:19 am
Izack says:
Plain and simple: Jason Kidd was robbed of the MVP after the ‘01-02 season. So many overlook that he took a franchise that had won ONE playoff series in its history prior to his arrival!! Injuries aside, Marbury had run the team into the ground with his selfish, sulking ways, and Kidd took the team IMMEADIATELY to heights it never could have dreamed of in nearly 25 years of mediocrity at best. He was barely beaten out by Duncan because some biased media members discounted the entire Eastern Conference as second rate and because Kidd was still fresh off the spousal abuse charges and I know for a fact some of these holier than thou types took that into account. What Kidd did for the Nets in ‘01-02 was almost a once in a lifetime achievement of brialliance and the evidence is that New Jersey has maintained a level of competitiveness in the East throughout his stay, much more than a one-hit wonder. Duncan is certainly a worthy MVP almost every year he stepped on the court, but ‘01-02 should have belonged to the Nets captain and one of the all-time great point guards in the sport.
Sep.29 at 5:35 am
nothin _personal says:
Read about half the comments, but I am gonna make a crazy statement anyway! Kidd and Nash are a bit different, in a way that Nash will only release the ball when his teammates have a clear shot. Not a missmatch, or a nice opportunity to get the D off balance, but only when a dime is definite. That’s actually a great thing for Phoenix, it gives people that can’t create their own shot a ton of points (Bell, Diaw, even Marion), but sometimes hurts his team. kidd is doing his alley-ups andfastbreak things, but a lot of times he will drive and kick, and the basket will be scored a couple of passes later, or will find Carter on the wing and clear the hell out. I guess it might be D’Antoni versus Lawrence Frank system, but that’s what I can see from my tv set.
Sep.29 at 9:03 am
Scoot says:
To say Marbury would have done what Kidd did is assinine. Kidd’s 01-02 team had plenty of missed games from the center MacCulloch or stupidity with Martin and his flagrant fouls (missed 9 games at least). Even then there were some nights when Van Horn’s tendonitis or Jekyll personality showed up and he didn’t. All the better for Richard Jefferson’s development you could say though. It is not like the lineup was intact the whole season through. But the main things different about this team was the confidence that Byron and Kidd infused into this team along with the fact they had a bench unlike
past Net teams. In particular were the contrasting styles of leadership by Marbury and Kidd. Marbury got the team off to a 6-4 start in 2000-2001 and as long as things go well he was great. But as adversity sets in he reacts negatively to the pressure and goes into derisive conflict with his teammates instead of instilling confidence. Kidd, by contrast, never saw a losing streak over 4 games in his initial season and that was in spite of all of the things going wrong upstairs in Martin’s head on down to the starting center MacCulloch being very limited later in the season with his chronic nerve condition.
Sep.29 at 9:14 am
Scoot says:
Kidd versus Marbury meaning to the playoffs not to the Finals And about the ‘03 Finals, The Nets weren’t “smoked” They were in all of the games but 1 and won 2. It took a revival from David Robinson for the Spurs to win game 5 and 6 even with Martin practically wearing a Spurs’ jersey for all he contributed to the Nets effort in those two games. If Jayson Williams had still been around, even playing limited minutes, the Nets would have shocked the basketball world. Rebounding won that series for the Spurs, and with no offensive rebounding for the Nets you are not going to make up for 3-23 from #6.
Sep.29 at 9:58 am
Breno Pequeno says:
I’m tired of people saying that KMart and Kittles weren’t healthy in the year before the trade of Kidd. Were Amare healthy in the year before Nash came? Were Joe Johnson a good player in the year before Nash came? Who was the point guard? Leandro Barbosa and he can’t be point guard today, after he improved a lot. This is stupid. Nash is the most overrated player EVER. Kidd is the best point guard today and the most underrated player in the league.
Sep.29 at 6:46 pm
Gerard Himself says:
Izack, I applaude you and agree with you too. That’s all I have to say.
Sep.29 at 6:49 pm
Bryan says:
It’s so false.Nobody was robbed Duncan earned it.
Sep.29 at 9:21 pm
Tariq says:
I understand Keith Van Horn will be the new co-host on The View.
Sep.30 at 3:38 am
Z says:
We can all agree that Marbury is not a very good point guard. See, that’s something.
Sep.30 at 7:30 am
Kayce Online says:
^ Marbury’s exactly what drives me nuts when I think about the state of professional basketball these days.. ultra-athletic supremely talented individuals who really just don’t understand how they need to play in order to make their teammates better & ultimately win.. if players like Stephen Jackson, Ricky Davis, etc became more cerebral, how potent would they be?
Sep.30 at 7:46 am
Jeff of InsideHoops says:
First
Oct.1 at 12:55 pm
Allenp says:
My point about the media’s attempts to frame Nash as the slow, small, less-athletic guy who beats opponents through his amazing intellect is evident to anyone who looks. Check out this feature in his hometown paper. http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0522nash0522.html
Oct.1 at 12:56 pm
Allenp says:
My point about the media’s attempts to frame Nash as the slow, small, less-athletic guy who beats opponents through his amazing intellect is evident to anyone who looks. Check out this feature in his hometown paper. Http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/sports/articles/0522nash0522.html
Oct.1 at 12:57 pm
Allenp says:
Seriously, at 6′3″ and 195, how many other points are that much bigger than Nash?
Oct.1 at 1:04 pm
Allenp says:
I can’t believe Russ is acting like he hasn’t heard Nash described as slow and unathletic on multiple occasions by NBA announcers or read it in columns and blogs. Yes, it’s a stupid opinion, but it’s one that is beamed to the masses constantly. Just Google Steve Nash + unathletic and you can find hundreds of people discussing his athleticism or lack of it.
Oct.1 at 1:13 pm
Ak says:
Russ, don’t get it twisted. Nash is good and noone is saying he’s not. But he’s got a talented bunch around him. Kidd doesn’t have that much talent around him yet finds ways to win. How well would Nash do in Jersey? I mean can you imagine Kidd playing on this current Suns team? C’mon Russ! You know the Suns would have gone a lot farther in the playoffs than they have. This is all I’m saying.
Oct.1 at 1:18 pm
Ak says:
Allenp, isn’t nike promoting Nash,LT and other athletes as being the fastest athletes in the world?
Oct.1 at 1:29 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I don’t know if the Suns would have gone a lot further (or any further) with Kidd in place of Nash. Nash’s scoring ability is important in their system, and Kidd just doesn’t have it. My favorite quote in that interview, though, has to be: “That’s one thing that guys on my team gotta understand—I believe in them as much as they should believe in me. Any time you take a shot, it’s a good shot. You miss, and I believe you’re gonna make the next one.” Entirely the opposite of Marbury’s actions (he KILLED KVH’s confidence) and exactly the right thing to say–and do.
Oct.1 at 1:35 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
Allenp: That story you linked to is two years old, and the only person in it who calls Nash “unathletic” is Bill Walton, who no one pays attention to anyway. And the “unathletic” tag is a lazy one played by commentators/sportswriters who simply compare his physique to those of guys like Amare and LeBron. When in reality Nash could probably run just about everyone in the League (with the exception of Rip Hamilton–another guy who gets ripped on ’cause he’s not, uh, ripped) into the ground. Guys like Nash and Rip may not be able to bench 400 pounds, but they’re among the MOST athletic guys in the League. Smart people realize this, and most columnists/commentators are not smart.
Oct.1 at 3:47 pm
Allenp says:
Russ, you’ve proven my point. I never argued that Nash was unathletic, I argued the exact opposite and have argued it with my friends. In fact, I’ve gone so far as to create an “athleticism” chart of the PGs in the league to determine where Nash lies. My point was that this idea is promoted by many, many commentators and sportswriters and then it becomes fact in people’s minds. I know you know this because you are a smart man. So, it’s not about whether the myth is true, of course it’s not, but it’s the myth that has been promoted. The article I found was old, but I’ve found many others doing Google searches. As a member of the media, I’m sure you are aware of just how much power the media possess. Perceptions are created and then passed along to the general public. This bothers me a lot because it plays on certain racial stereotypes also not based in fact. Kobe is clearly one of the smartest players in the league, but rarely is his intelligency lauded, it’s all about his “skills.” Both aspects need to be discussed for both players. Point blank, I want you to pay attention to how often Nash is called “the little guy” and see if it’s not a common occurrence.
Oct.1 at 3:50 pm
Allenp says:
Ak, it’s a study in contradictions. Nike says Nash is fast, announcers say he’s unathletic. He’s the little, slow, smart guy making it happen through pure will. BS. He’s physically blessed, incredible talented, driven and the prototypical size for a point guard. I just want athletes represented as full human beings, not caricatures to fit society’s general myths.
Oct.1 at 3:53 pm
Allenp says:
And Russ, it’s dishonest of you to say that the only person discussing Nash’s lack of athleticism was Bill Walton in that article. The author was clearly framing the narrative in that manner, only using Walton’s quote to back comments already written.
Oct.1 at 3:56 pm
Allenp says:
And AK was the one who said the Nets hadn’t been to the playoffs in six years, not Russ. My apologies. He said it in his post where he expressed surprise that he was actually agreeing with me. I assumed his data was correct, and it was not.
Oct.1 at 4:00 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
I don’t think it’s dishonest to say that Walton was the only one. Hell, there’s a whole section in there called “the body theory” that directly discusses Nash’s summer workouts. I just think there’s a general stereotype where you’re only considered “athletic” in the NBA if you have huge bulging muscles and can jump over houses. Like, you know, Corey Maggette. Guys like Nash, Rip, even Marcus Camby, will always be looked on as skinny and less athletic by some despite COPIOUS video evidence to the contrary. However, I think if you asked a random selection of NBA fans about Nash’s athleticism, he’d get a lot of credit in that regard.
Oct.1 at 4:02 pm
Russ Bengtson says:
It’s a sport bias more than anything else. If Nash were actually a professional soccer player, he’d be praised for his athleticism. He just happens to play in a league where Earl Boykins can bench-press Shaq.
Oct.1 at 8:11 pm
Free Vick says:
Kidd can’t lick the sweat off timmys balls. Tim would kill with VC play wit it. And I don’t even like VC.
Oct.2 at 10:24 am
Ak says:
Russ, saying that Kidd simply doesn’t have the scoring ability is ridiculous! And what are you implying by that? I think that’s pushing it! Kidd has all the intangibles that Nash lacks. Kidd can produce a triple double on any given night! People talk about Nash being a better shooter than Kidd and you’re saying he’s a better scorer than Kidd BUT Kidd is a much better point guard than Nash!